The Cossacks and the authorities

The Cossacks had a very strong tradition of independence. Though recognizing the
authority of the Russian Tsar, they would not let government officials arrest runaway
serfs accepted into Cossack communities. Their freedom was formulated in two brief
formulas: "There is no extradition from the Don" (S Donu vydachi
net) and
"We do not bow to anybody, except Tsar" (My ne klanyaemsya nikomu, okromya
Gosudarya). So, despite their free-spirited independence, the Cossacks had a special
relationship with the Romanov Dynasty. And for sure, Cossacks
always had very specific relationship with the Russian State.

With support of Russia the Cossacks expanded eastward from their home in the Don and
were early colonizers of Siberia. For example, ataman Ermak, the
conqueror of Siberia, was a Cossack. In 1648 the Cossack Semion Dezhnev rounded the
northeastern tip of Asia, way before Vitus Bering, who only in 1728 announced that Asia
and America are separate (really, it would be more appropriate to call it the Dezhnev
Strait). Many cities in Siberia were founded as Cossack settlements (stanitsa).
In fact, Cossacks were the founders of almost all
Siberian towns.